If at first you don't succeed..

Our last reading unit focused on character series books. As part of this unit, the kiddos got to read together in "book clubs" on a particular series.  On the first day of the unit, I thought I was prepared -- I'd picked out guided reading books with series characters for each small groups and planned to have them add their new books to their individual book bins.  As I began handing out the books, however, I was met with a lot of, "I've read that," "I don't like that character," and "How many other books can I get?"

I didn't want to continue like this: I knew the kiddos had to be invested in this unit in order to make the growth I hoped they would. I wanted them to be excited about spending time with these characters because they would be working with one series for at least a week.  I also needed things to run smoothly so that I could focus on conferencing with my struggling readers.  I halted the whole process and decided to reconsider my next steps.

My next step was, of course, to consult my fabulous colleagues.  I gathered more books, empty bins, and some helpful advice.  I learned that each kid in the book club should have a bookmark to claim their copy of a book within the bin (I color coded the bookmarks to make it easy to assign roles to one partner in the group.)  I also labeled the bins and printed out a list of the kiddos assigned to each club.

The next day, we started fresh.  To build the excitement back up, I covered the bookshelf and added a sign: "Reading Series Book Clubs COMING SOON."  By the time reading began, the kiddos couldn't wait to jump in to their new books.

I revealed the new shelf, complete with mentor texts displayed on top.  The kiddos "oohed" and "ahhed."  I handed out their bookmarks and assigned them to their bins.  This time, I had really worked to select series that were not only at the correct reading level but also had characters that would appeal to individual kiddos.  The kiddos were thrilled!  They immediately began reading, looking for characters across the books in their series and noticing character traits.

Unfortunately, my classroom doesn't have much space for our library, so this is our main reading spot.  In order to add just a little bit more excitement and make sure the kiddos are comfortable reading here, I also added a rug and bean bag in front of the bookshelf.  Finally, this unit got off to a great start after all :)